Lesson -10
The Balloon Man


1.   Why do you like balloons?
2.   What occassions do you use them on?

He always comes on market days,
And holds balloons - a lovely bunch
And in the market square he stays,
And never seems to think of lunch.

They are red and purple, blue and green,
And when it is a sunny day,
Tho' carts and people get between
You see them shining far away.

And some are big and some are small,
All tied together with a string,
And if there is a wind at all,
They tug and tug like anything.


Some day perhaps he'll let them go
And we shall see them sailing high
And stand and watch them from below,
They would look pretty in the sky!

- Rose Fyleman


EXERCISES

Listen and Repeat

days 
bunch         
green
high
stays
lunch
teen  
sigh
rays  
munch        
between     
tie

Word Power

A)   Pick out the rhyming words from the poem for the following words:
Word         Rhyming word
folds              holds
funny             sunny
dining            shining
mug               tug
failing           sailing

B)   Write the encircled words against their correct meanings:
a)   Where the things are sold market.
b)   A bag of thin rubber that becomes larger and rounder when filled with air ballon.
c)   A vehicle with two or four wheels pulled by a horse cart.
d)   A thread used to tie the balloon string.
e)   The space above the earth that you see when you look up sky.

Comprehension
Answer the following questions:
Q.1   Who always comes on market days?
Ans. –The balloonman always comes on market days.

Q.2   What does he hold?
Ans. – He hold balloons.

Q.3   What are the colours of the balloons which shine far away?
Ans. – They are red, purple, blue and green in colour.

Q.4   What do the balloons look like in the sky?
Ans. – They look pretty in the sky.

Q.5   Write any four lines of this poem.
Ans. -  
He always comes on market days,
And holds balloons - a lovely bunch
And in the market square he stays,
And never seems to think of lunch.



Q.6   What does the poet say in the third stanza?
Ans. – The poet says, All types of balloons are tied together and they are tug by wind.

Let's Read
Read the following passage carefully:
In a small village, there lived a rich man. He had a friend, who could not hear. The deaf friend learned that the rich man was ill. So he went one afternoon to visit the rich man.

“I must see my friend and try to make him happy,” he said to himself. “But I must think of what I’m going to say. I must take care and not say anything that might make him angry. First I’ll ask, ‘Well, how are you today?’ He’ll answer, ‘Fine, Thank you.’ Then I’ll ask him about his food. He’ll say. ‘Rice without salt.’ And I’ll say, ‘That’s good for you. I hope it helps you.’ Then I’ll ask, ‘who is your doctor?’ and he will tell me that such and such person is his doctor, and I’ll say, “I hope god will help him with his work.”

The deaf man then reached the rich man’s house and sat down near his bed.

The rich man was too sick and was not too happy to have someone to talk to.

“My dear friend, how are you?” asked the deaf man.

“I’m troubled with a bad fever,” answered the rich man. “I can’t sleep at night.”

The deaf man smiled and said, “Very good! I hope god will keep you this way!”

Then he asked, “What do you eat?”

By this time the rich man was angry. “The dust of the earth!” he answered. “That’s good for you,” said the deaf man. “I hope it helps you. And tell me,

who is your doctor?”

“Doctor?” cried the rich man. “Death himself !”

“Oh, that’s good,” said the deaf man. “I hope god will help him with his work.” And he returned home.


Now answer the following questions:

Q.1.   Where did the rich man live?
Ans. – The richman lived in a small village.

Q.2.   Why did the deaf friend go to visit the rich man?
Ans. – The deaf friend learned that the richman was ill. So he went to visit the richman.

Q.3.   Fill in the blanks with the correct words given in brackets.
     a)   The rich  man was ill. (deaf / rich)
     b)   The deaf man wanted to make the rich man happy. (angry / happy)

Q.4.   Say whether the following statements are True or False:
     a)   The deaf man’s questions made the rich man happy.  [False]
     b)   The deaf man said all the ‘wrong’ things because he could not hear the rich man’s answers.  [True]
     c)   The deaf man went home, thinking that he had made his friend happy.   [True]

Let's Write

Read carefully the second stanza of the poem again. The poet has described the colours of the balloons. Have you ever been to a fair and seen a balloon seller? Write a paragraph about the shapes and colours of the balloons and also other things he sells. Begin like this ....

Once I had been to a fair near my village ____________________________
Ans. – Once I went to a weekly fair with my papa in my village. There was a big crowd. We were moving here and there. Suddenly I saw a man who was selling balloons and other things. He has red, green, blue, yellow, black etc. Balloons. They had round, long, heart shapes etc. in shape. The sun was shining so his balloons were shining from far away. They were looking beautiful and attractive. I requested my papa to buy the balloons. I bought four balloons of different colours and shapes.

Let's do it

1.   Form groups and read the poem loudly.

2.   Make a scrap book (or an album) of pictures of things and different shapes of balloons sold in the fair you have visited. Write the names of the things and the colours of the balloons in your notebook.
Students do themselves.